Land Day
East Winders celebrated May and the 38th
anniversary of purchasing our land on the 1st of this month. Our Land Day celebration was complete with a
maypole, bonfire, mud pit, drumming, and musical talent on our stage and around
the fire. Nature smiled on us by giving
us a beautiful sunny day for our celebration, and a good time was had by all.
Garden
Tomatoes, sweet and hot peppers, and melons are soaking up
the sun in our new Mulberry
Garden. Thousands of mulberries ripened on the
mulberry tree in the center of our garden, and the first delicious blackberries,
raspberries, and blueberries were harvested.
In our upper garden, strawberries were harvested daily during the first
few weeks of the month. Fresh broccoli,
snap peas and snow peas, and greens and garden salads were greatly enjoyed in
the kitchen, and the first of the summer garlic harvest is beautifully braided
and proudly hung in the dining hall.
Caldendula, echinacea, chamomile, bee balm, hyssop, and milk thistles
bloomed in our herb gardens, while the enchanting pink flowers of the mimosa
trees continue to bloom into June.
May is the time for East Wind’s annual managerial
elections. Members of East Wind are able
to run for year-long terms in positions such as Garden Manager, Ranch Manager,
Membership Manager, Kitchen Manager, Recreation Manager, Food Processing
Manager, etc. The term ‘manager’ is used
very differently at East Wind than in most places. At East Wind, managers do not have the
authority to hire or fire or give commands.
Managers are just East Winders who volunteer to see that a job gets
done, and are given access to a budget agreed upon by the community as a
whole. Managers aren’t bosses here;
they’re coworkers. Some managerships are
very big jobs and can become overwhelming, and managers often need a lot of
help and teamwork to accomplish their goals. There was a lot of community
participation this year with over forty members voting in the elections, and
new managers take on their positions on the 1st of June.
